Seið Protect Sorkvir

After that the dead were stripped of plunder, and the king went into the town with his retinue, and they had all manner of merriment, with drink and musical instruments. So passed the night. In the morning, the king called to Grim Aegir and his fellows that they should find the princess, and they did. When they entered her quarters, she greeted King Eirek, yet she was weeping and woeful. King Eirek cheered her up and said that they would compensate her for the loss of her men, and for the harm she had suffered—“and you shall receive any boon from me that you wish to request and that is seemly for us to offer, if then you will come to terms with us and do as we wish.”

Princess Ingigerd said, “He may not rightly bear the title of king who does not keep his promise to a young maiden. I will come to terms with you and do your will, if you will keep your word and offer me the favor that I ask of you. But I would rather do away with myself quickly than marry some man unwillingly, and then no one would enjoy me.”

The king’s heart was filled with great love for her. He said, “May he who does not keep his word to you become a worthless wretch. Choose this very moment, and I shall grant it.”

“My first request,” said the princess, “is that a burial mound be raised for my father, large and well built inside, with a high plank fence around the mound. The mound shall stand a long way from here, in the wilderness. I shall bear gold and fine treasures into the mound next to him. He shall be dressed in his full armor and girded with his sword. He is to sit on a chair, with his fallen champions arranged on both sides of him. None of your men are to catch the horse Dulcifal; he must run as he wishes. For three years, I and those whom I shall appoint to stay with me will rule over a quarter of the kingdom. Those who belong to my household must all be left in peace and tranquility. Every year, I shall get a man to joust with you, or with Sorkvir your champion. Should I not find one of my men so excellent that he can knock Sorkvir from the back of his horse, you shall marry me and rule the entire kingdom. But if Sorkvir is beaten, you both shall go away with all your retinue and never enter Russia again, and I shall claim the realm and the rulership after my father, as is rightful.”

Grim Aegir said, “This request can hardly be granted, because it comes from deep insight and long forethought. I don’t think you’ll stand for being kept waiting so long for an answer from any woman, my lord. But you may trust Sorkvir well that he will cause you no harm, along with my counsels and cleverness.”

The king replied, “I didn’t think that you would ask for this, princess. Yet I must keep my word to you, because I trust Sorkvir well. You will not find a more excellent man than him.” They bound their agreement with oaths and ended their discussion.

Grim Aegir said, “A plan has come to mind that will help us. We must cast a spell and work sorcery[17] so that no one can beat Sorkvir, neither in jousting nor in single combat, unless that man has all of King Hreggvid’s armor and weapons. But the mound must be built so strongly, with walls and bricks, that it can never be opened by any human being. You’ll want to keep all your word to the princess. You should keep sending men after the armor, and promise your sister Gyda to the man who manages to get it. Then the armor and weapons will be in your grasp—or else the men won’t come back alive.”

The king and all his men felt that this was good advice. The mound was raised, and King Hreggvid was laid inside. Ingigerd was the last to leave of the mound. She secretly had a second set of armor brought there and laid it in her father’s lap. The mound was closed and fenced off as Grim Aegir directed. Then the kingdom was divided according to their arrangements, and everything done that was said before. The princess couldn’t find anyone who dared to challenge Sorkvir. The king sent many men to the mound, and not one came back.

Grim Aegir ruled Ermland. That is a royal estate in Russia, and all those who served under him were unhappy with their lot. He and Thord the Bald Man of Hlesey always had great struggles with the men from the towns of Jotunheim, beyond Aluborg. How they fought each other, with spells and magic and huge battles, would take many stories to tell. Both were the worse for it, and neither was the better. Sorkvir and Brynjolf set out raiding in the summers, and took charge of the defense of King Eirek’s lands. Princess Ingigerd stayed in a safe castle in her kingdom, with her picked men, and was quite heartsick over her lot.

[...]

After a few days, Hrolf tapped Vilhjalm on the legs one night and said, “It’s time to win the maiden’s hand and go to the mound.”

Vilhjalm stood up quickly. Hrolf was dressed, wearing Vefreyja’s Gift and holding the spear Atli’s Gift, but Vilhjalm wore full armor. He rode, but Hrolf walked in front of his horse. They traveled on in this way until they came to a forest, and they found an ancient footpath. But when they had gone a short way, such a howling gale blew up against them, with snowstorms and frost, that Vilhjalm couldn’t stay on horseback. Then Hrolf led the horse, and Vilhjalm walked behind it for a while, until the blizzard grew so strong that the horse couldn’t walk. Hrolf dragged it flat behind him, steadying himself with the spear. He looked back and saw that Vilhjalm had disappeared, and the horse had been dead for a long time. He left the horse there and went forward on the path. The blizzard was so strong that oak-trees were snapping from their stumps and falling from a great height. They often struck Hrolf with severe blows which would have brought death to most men, and there was such lightning and thunder that he thought he would have been killed if the cloak had not protected him. This went on all night until dawn. Towards daybreak, such a terrible stench came at him that he would have choked if the face-mask hadn’t saved him. Hrolf realized that the blizzard must have killed the king’s men, and that it must be a storm sent by magic. He thought that he had never faced such a trial.

But when the day was brightest, the blizzard abated and the weather calmed, and the stench disappeared. Hrolf saw a mound as high as a mountain, and a tall stockade ringing it. He gripped one of the posts with his hand and vaulted over the stockade. Then he walked up onto the mound, feeling that it would be very difficult to break into. When he looked around, he saw a very tall man in royal vestments on the north side of the mound. Hrolf went up to him and greeted him as befitted a king and asked him his name.

He said, “I am Hreggvid, and I live inside this mound with my champions. You’re welcome here. You must know, Hrolf, that I don’t control these blizzards and stenches or other strange happenings, and I haven’t killed anyone. Sorkvir and Grim Aegir are the cause of all of these, and they have caused the deaths of the king’s men. Still, their wisdom sometimes falls short when they need it most. If they knew that you were here, they would want you dead. I went to Jarl Thorgnyr in the likeness of a swallow, with a hair from my daughter Ingigerd, because I knew that you of all the jarl’s men would search for her and you alone were the man to free her, if luck is with you. I give you permission to enjoy her in the best way if you will joust against Sorkvir, for you lack neither boldness nor bravery. But Grim Aegir has promised Sorkvir that no one shall overcome him except for the man who bears my armor. That’s why this mound is made to be unbreakable, and why there are barriers to entry—because he thought that no one should be able to get the armor. Now I shall get you everything that you want from the mound. I will give you two sets of armor, identical to each other except for the quality. You shall give the king the worse set. You must not let anyone see the other set until you need it, and you must take great care of the sword, because you’ll seldom see another one like it. My daughter Ingigerd is guarding all my jousting weapons and the horse Dulcifal, who’s unlike most other horses in many respects. You must ride him when you fight Sorkvir, and you’re certain to win victory if he lets you catch him. The lance and the shield will also keep their nature. You must not trust Vilhjalm even when you are out of his service, because he will betray you if he can. You’ll want to keep your oath, but it’s better if he’s put to death sooner rather than later, because he will put you in danger.”

After that, Hreggvid gave Hrolf the treasures and weapons, and finally the necklace from around his neck. Then Hreggvid said, “It is fated that I may leave my mound three times, and there’s no need to close it up until the last time. Now you shouldn’t encounter any obstacles when you return home. Go well, and may everything go for you as you might wish. But if you come back to Russia, visit me if you need a little something.”

[...]

The assembly was held a short distance from Princess Ingigerd’s castle. King Eirek came to the assembly with a great throng. Sorkvir and Brynjolf were there with him, along with Vilhjalm his son-in-law, and they all boasted a great deal. Hrolf also traveled there, and he brought the spear Hreggvid’s Gift with him. He seemed of no account. A vast multitude assembled. This is how they were arranged at the assembly: ranks of men were arranged in circles, with an aisle connecting them. Vilhjalm sat nearest to the king, with Sorkvir and Brynjolf next to him, and the other distinguished men seated themselves. Hrolf sat in the outermost circle and lay low.

Once the men were arranged, Princess Ingigerd entered the assembly, so fair and delightful that it was impossible to exaggerate her loveliness. All the men turned to watch her, except Hrolf; he didn’t look at her and pulled his hood down over his face. The princess came before each man and looked into his eyes. She went around the second circle, and then the next one out. In the end, she came to where Hrolf sat, and gripped his hand, but he stayed where he was. She lifted up his hood and said, “There’s not a good choice of men here, but I choose this man to joust on my behalf against Sorkvir, and this man shall wed me if he wishes.”

Hrolf said, “You’ve made a completely stupid choice, because I don’t know how to ride a horse by myself without falling down. Also, I get scared when people frown at me.”

The princess said, “I’ve never seen you before—yet you shall not leave, if I have any say in the matter.”
King Eirek said, “Young lady, I think you must choose a man from this country, not from other kingdoms. Hrolf is Vilhjalm’s servant and my man. He should be released from this.”

Hrolf said, “In this land, I am no man’s servant. And I shall certainly grant the princess the first favor that she asks for, if she thinks she’ll be any more free afterwards than before.”

Hrolf stood up and went with the princess and all her men into her castle. She seated Hrolf in the high seat and offered him all honor and good cheer. King Eirek left the assembly and went to another castle, and he was very unhappy. Most people were astounded that the princess would choose this man, the likeliest to be defeated. The king deeply regretted making the agreement with the princess, and he ordered Sorkvir to put forth all his effort and not hold back any of the tricks up his sleeve. “This man has always weighed on my mind. Now you must guard the armor Hreggvid’s Gift carefully, so that it can’t harm us.”

Hrolf stayed in the castle beside the princess and was given a warm welcome. He told her about his mission on behalf of the jarl, but she said that she already knew that. “So I have decided that I will escape from here with you. I believe you’re the one who most deserves to enjoy me, if you can free me from the power of my enemies.” That said, they parted.

In the morning, Hrolf got up early and put on the armor Hreggvid’s Gift, and girded himself with the good sword. The princess fetched him the lance and shield that her father had owned. She asked him to go and take the stallion Dulcifal. He had been driven into a strong stockade with many horses; he bit and kicked and killed many of them. Hrolf went to the stockade and struck the lance on the shield. Dulcifal came to Hrolf, and the lance and shield rang out so loudly that all the bystanders were astonished. Hrolf saddled the horse and nimbly leaped up in full armor. Dulcifal sprang from his place and leaped over the fences without ever touching them, and then charged forth onto the field.

Sorkvir had also come to the jousting field, and the king with him, together with Vilhjalm and Brynjolf and a huge rabble.

[...]

Now each man couched his lance and rode at the other as fast as the horses could run. Each man stabbed at the other with great force. Sorkvir’s spear hit Hrolf’s shield and glanced off, but Hrolf knocked Sorkvir’s helmet off. At that moment, Sorkvir had only ridden a third as far as Hrolf had. Dulcifal didn’t want to hold still and turned back around, and Sorkvir hadn’t ridden a fourth of the way before they met. Each stabbed at the other again, and it went as before: Sorkvir didn’t accomplish anything and lost his shield. Then they rode at each other a third time. Dulcifal ran as fast as a bird flies until they met. Hrolf stabbed at Sorkvir so that the lance stuck in his mailcoat, and he lifted him out of the saddle. He galloped over the field with him until he flung him down headlong into a stinking cesspit, so that Sorkvir’s neck broke. Then Dulcifal stood as still as if he had sunk down into the earth. The princess and all the people of her land were overjoyed.

When King Eirek saw that, he flew into a rage and ordered all his men to surround Hrolf and kill him as quickly as possible. He swore that Hrolf would do worse deeds later if he were to get free now. They did as the king commanded and attacked Hrolf on all sides. But when Dulcifal saw that, he reared up on his hind legs and kicked with his forelegs and bit with his teeth, bringing death to many men. His eyes were as red as blood clots, and it seemed as if fire were blazing from his nose and mouth, and he charged so fast that he trampled men underfoot. Hrolf stayed on his back and didn’t sit quietly. He put the sword Hreggvid’s Gift to the test, striking and stabbing men and horses alike, left and right. There was certain death for everyone who faced him. Now everyone fled. Hrolf rode towards where the king had been, but he had run away. Hrolf killed more than a hundred men before he escaped into the forest, and he was weary but not wounded. King Eirek thought that he had suffered severe losses. He went home to his own castle that evening, quite dejected.

That same evening, the princess celebrated with her men, and rewarded them freely. She got all her chambermaids so drunk that they fell asleep, but when the night was almost through, Hrolf came to the castle and found the princess and told her to get ready to go with him. She said that she wasn’t unprepared.


- The Saga of Hrolf the Walker (Göngu-Hrólfs saga), Chapters 3, 16, 20, and 21


("[17] The word translated “spell” and “sorcery” here is seiðr, which could encompass several types of magical effect, including clairvoyance, divination, protection, and creating illusions or altering mental states. (See notes 60-61.)" - Footnote included with translation)